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Volume 51 Number 14
Shelburne responds to Noble settlement
shelburnenews.com
April 7, 2022
Sam’s lambs
Taxpayers to pay out 200k to police chief COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER
Shelburne taxpayers are finding themselves in familiar territory. For the second time in less than five years, Shelburne residents will be paying out their police chief’s salary through a settlement agreement following an abrupt suspension and will, instead, get consulting work from another former police head — thanks to town officials’ concerns about the direction of the police department. Former police chief James Warden, who served for 30 years, was placed under suspension in July 2017 by then-town-manager Joe Colangelo over concerns about how he was running the department. Aaron Noble, deputy chief at the time, was put in charge of the department. Warden and the town then reached a See SETTLEMENT on page 2
PHOTO BY LEE KROHN
The lambs at Shelburne Farms seem used to the camera. The flock is managed by dairy farm manager Sam Dixon.
South Burlington benefits most from new legislative districts AVALON STYLES-ASHLEY AND COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITERS
South Burlington is set to be a heavyweight in Vermont’s newly redrawn legislative maps, gaining another state representative and cornering a third majority in a new Senate district. But the city’s gain could also potentially overshadow several smaller Chittenden County towns like Shelburne, Hinesburg and
Charlotte lumped into those new districts. In the House, the city will share a fifth state representative with a portion of Williston and could rule one of three new Chittenden County Senate districts should Gov. Phil Scott lend his signature to the maps, which headed to his desk last week. “We will be well represented,” South Burlington city clerk Donna Kinville said. “Not to displace anybody else, but I mean, technically we are kind of the largest municipality in this group, and therefore have the
possibility of possibly having three senators.” The Legislature has broken up Chittenden County’s six-member Senate district, replacing it with two proposed three-member districts and one single-member district: Chittenden Central, Chittenden North and Chittenden Southeast. Two Chittenden County senators who currently reside in South Burlington, Thomas Chittenden and Michael Sirotkin, both Democrats, would keep their seats,
alongside Sen. Ginny Lyons of Williston in the new three-member Chittenden Southeast district. “For many of us who have been representing these towns and voters, it will be a continuing effort on our part and I look forward to it,” Lyons said. “There’s a lot of relief about having three districts instead of one.” Sen. Chittenden argued that the LegislaSee DISTRICTS on page 12
Page 2 • April 7, 2022 • Shelburne News
Town not obligated to provide consulting work in Noble settlement MIKE DONOGHUE CORRESPONDENT
The town of Shelburne will allow departing police chief Aaron Noble to use almost 14 weeks of vacation, compensatory, holiday and personal time as part of a severance package that is expected to cost taxpayers nearly $200,000 over the next 18 months.
The signed agreement, released by the town on Thursday, is in sharp contrast to the package provided four years ago when chief James Warden retired after 30 years heading the department. Warden was denied accumulated sick, vacation, compensatory and other accrued leave. The town signed him to a six-month consulting contract. Noble, who served four years
as chief, will be paid his $102,440 In the Noble case, the town annual salary through Oct. 15, agrees that during his nearly 14 2023. Taxpayers also will pay for weeks using accrued leave the all his benefits, former chief will including health not be offered “The town entered and dental insurany consulting ances, through work. into this settlement October of this Lt. Michael year. Thomas, who in an effort to After October has been acting he will continue chief since achieve a peaceful to draw his annual December, will salary for another continue to run resolution to what year but will not the short-handaccumulate sick ed department. could have been or vacation time As part or receive any of the signed a difficult and benefits. settlement: While the • Noble can’t resource-intensive Noble agreement visit the Shelwas approved burne Police process.” Wednesday night, Department or March 30, after offices — Town statement town a closed-door unless he needs session, town officials withheld to meet with the town manager it from the public until it could to perform consulting work or as be notarized. When Warden’s a private citizen seeking police agreement was approved at a services. selectboard meeting four years • Noble will be provided a ago, copies of the agreement were retired police officer’s identificaimmediately made available. (See tion card that allows him under related here: bit.ly/3KcpK72) federal law to carry a concealed
weapon in any state, the agreement noted. • The town will only provide dates of employment during inquiries about his work tenure. • Noble will return all equipment, including his police weapon. Noble will be allowed to keep his cellphone number, but the town will stop paying for the service. • Noble will no longer have use of town vehicles. • Noble agreed he will not seek any full-time or part-time work in law enforcement or with a municipality. • Both the town and Noble agreed to make no disparaging remarks about the other side. The town is under no obligation to provide any assignments to Noble, but any consulting work will come through the town manager’s office and not the police department. Find the Shelburne Selectboard’s press release announcing its settlement with Noble and the separation agreement at bit. ly/3xbdQqv.
SETTLEMENT
continued from page 1 separation agreement, agreeing to why Noble is getting the deal in After Noble’s leave in Decempay out his salary through the end the first place and how does the ber, the town brought in former of that year but denying him sick, department recover and stabilize Vermont State Police director vacation, compensatory and other itself? James Baker to get to the bottom accrued leave. “We suffered through a horri- of the exodus of employees. He Now fast forward five years: ble and hurtful termination of interviewed current and past Noble, after employees and his receiving notice report illustrated a “If anyone should see a financial kickback it of the town’s lack of support for “lack of faith” Noble and cited his should be the taxpayers. Better yet, pay the in his leadership leadership for many from current of those depardedicated officers who have remained with the town managtures. The report er Lee Krohn, also revealed that department and who have been asked to work takes family some members of leave — leavthe department felt incredible hours protecting our town.” ing the departColangelo shouldn’t ment adrift after handed Noble —Thomas Murphy, Shelburne resident have a mass exodus the police chief’s of more than 16 job. (See related, bit. officers and dispatchers in less employment with our former ly/3J6gbpb) than a year. (See related story, chief Warden, and now to see The longtime second in page 2) the disparity between the agree- command, Shelburne Sgt. Allen After months of uncertainty, ment the town made with him and Fortin, was the favored candidate Noble signed a settlement agree- the exorbitant one just offered four years ago. He had earlier ment — retaining his $102,440 to Aaron Noble — well it is just served as the first police chief in annual salary through Oct. 15, shameful,” said Shelburne resi- Hinesburg. 2023, while keeping all his bene- dent Linda Riell, a frequent critic fits, including health and dental of the operations of the depart- Payout insurance through October of this ment under Noble. Why the town agreed to such year. “I have no idea why (Noble) is a large payout for Noble is not All told, the severance pack- getting that kind of (payout) since entirely clear. In a statement, age is expected to cost taxpayers he basically did nothing while he the town said that it entered the nearly $200,000 over the next 18 was chief, and he was the cause settlement “in an effort to achieve months. of most of the force leaving — a peaceful resolution to what “What am I missing here?” so I don’t see what he’s getting could have been a difficult and Thomas Murphy, a Martindale paid for. Where’s his expertise?” resource-intensive process.” Road resident, asked. Vivian Jordan, a Shelburne resiThe speculation is that Noble The end of the Aaron Noble dent, said. “He’s going to do noth- would’ve been able to sue the saga has only left some residents ing and get paid with our taxpayer See SETTLEMENT on page 3 with more concerns, such as money.”
Shelburne News • April 7, 2022 • Page 3
SETTLEMENT
continued from page 2 town for termination without cause. “They want to avoid a worse lawsuit,” Sean Moran, a resident and former selectboard candidate, said. “I think (Noble) would have had a great lawsuit against the city for more money.” Norm Blais, Noble’s attorney, said in a phone call that Noble “had an entitlement to continued employment unless just cause existed to let him go.” “I would suspect the reason that the town entered into the agreement is because the town didn’t feel it had just cause, therefore they were willing to negotiate with us,” he said. “He was a tenured cop — he could have stayed there until he engaged in wrongdoing. If there’s someone else they feel should’ve been chief and not him, that’s not good cause to fire somebody.” Noble’s new role as a consultant for the department, meanwhile, also remains unclear. Krohn said that any consulting work, and the process for which it is to be conducted, is “yet to be determined.” Noble, as part of the agreement, is not allowed on the police or town hall premises unless invited by Krohn. Naturally, some residents are disappointed in the result. “The results of the James Baker investigation into the complete dismantling of our police department were crystal clear — former police chief Noble was the reason for so many departures. Why have the selectboard and town manager rewarded
Noble with an 18-month salary gift instead of terminating his employment?” Murphy said. “If anyone should see a financial kickback it should be the taxpayers,” he added. “Better yet, pay the dedicated officers who have remained with the department and who have been asked to work incredible hours protecting our town.” The end of Noble’s tenure does add some closure for the department. He arrived at the Shelburne Police Station the morning of March 30 to clean out his desk and remove personal belongings and had little to say to police and dispatch employees in the office, according to sources. But obstacles remain — specifically a police and dispatch union contract that has yet to be signed. Led by acting chief Michael Thomas, the department is working with a skeleton crew, with only five part-time officers working from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. The state police are on-call through the remainder of the night, but only for more serious crimes. Thomas said he awaits direction from Krohn and the selectboard. “There’s still a lot of unanswered questions,” he said. “Right now, we’re taking it one step at a time.” According to Moran, the people in Shelburne “should be pissed off.” “This is the second time in four years that we paid out for a police chief,” he said. “Are we going to go through this again?”
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Page 4 • April 7, 2022 • Shelburne News
Shelburne Police Blotter Total reported incidents: 59 Traffic stops: 4 Traffic tickets: 2 Traffic incidents: 1 Warnings: 2 Agency assists: 8 Citizen assists: 3 Medical Emergencies: 27 Thefts: 3 Car crashes: 2 Suspicious events: 4 Welfare check: 3 Alarms: 4 False Alarms: 5 Pending investigations: 4
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March 29 at 3:49 p.m., a man was pushing a shopping cart in the middle of the road on Harrington Avenue. When dispatched to the area police were unable to find him. March 29 at 6:06 p.m., police arrested Noah Myott, 36, of Winooski, for smashing a window of a local business. He was cited for unlawful mischief and released. March 30 at 10:39 a.m., a Pierson Drive resident reported receiving threatening calls and messages. An investigation is pending. March 31 at 9:41 a.m., Shelburne police assisted South Burlington police by serving a trespass notice to an individual on Shelburne Road. March 31 at 1:07 p.m., a resident in the Terraces called police to
report items that she thought had been taken by a neighbor. She refused, however, to speak to an officer in person. The case is pending further investigation. March 31 at 3:45 p.m., someone committed thievery at Danform Shoes. Police could not find the thief when they arrived on scene. The incident is pending further investigation. March 31 at 3:56 p.m., personal belongings were taken from a man’s home on Shelburne Road. The theft is pending further investigation. April 1 at 8:59 a.m., a theft was reported at Tractor Supply. Police issued a trespass notice to the person in question. April 1 at 9:38 a.m., police were informed that someone at the North Star Motel was selling drugs, but they were unable to confirm the names of the individuals involved. April 1 at 6:58 p.m., Shelburne Police assisted Vermont State Police in stopping a vehicle that left the scene of a domestic disturbance in Charlotte. The operator was located and later released. April 2 at 8:33 a.m., “strange things” were happening on a bus on Falls Road, a caller See BLOTTER on page 5
Shelburne News
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Shelburne News • April 7, 2022 • Page 5
CRIME & COURTS
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Jury orders Shelburne doc to pay $5.25 million MIKE DONOGHUE CORRESPONDENT
A federal court jury has ordered a former Central Vermont doctor to pay $5.25 million to a former patient he secretly impregnated with his own sperm more than 40 years ago. Dr. John Boyd Coates III of Shelburne, who had his medical license revoked by the state in February, had earlier under oath denied the claim, but this week during his civil trial admitted he had used his sperm, rather than a donor, and never told the woman. The trial was scheduled to determine how much Coates, who is retired, should pay in damages to his victim, who now lives in Florida with her husband. Before trial began, though, the defense dropped its initial claim that Coates was not the biological father. The eight-member jury awarded $250,000 in compensatory damages for injuries and $5 million in punitive damages — the exact amounts Burlington lawyer Celeste Laramie of Gravel and Shea requested on behalf of her client. Laramie said it was important for other doctors to hear “you don’t lie to your patients,” she said. The request for $5 million in punitive damages also was to send a message to the medical field that similar misconduct will not be tolerated, said Laramie, who was assisted by attorney Jerome O’Neill. The jurors, in answering a nine-page questionnaire, said Coates failed to disclose the use of his own genetic material to perform the artificial insemination procedure. They also noted other
BLOTTER
continued from page 4 told police, but responding officers found nothing strange going down. April 2 at 2:25 p.m., a couple of roommates at a General Greene Road residence were arguing about paying the bills. Police showed up and, after speaking with the individuals, mediated the dispute.
doctors would have made the disclosure and Rousseau never would have agreed to it if told. The jury deliberated nearly four hours over two days before returning the verdict. Coates faces another medical malpractice lawsuit in federal court with identical claims from a second Central Vermont woman. She also had a daughter from sperm the doctor unknowingly provided her, court records allege. The two mothers, who gave birth to their respective babies in December 1977 and February 1979, had agreements with Coates that mandated the donors would be unknown, young medical school doctors who resembled the respective husbands of each woman, records and testimony showed. After Coates was sued for malpractice, the Vermont Medical Practice Board began an investigation into possible misconduct claims. The board eventually filed six counts of unprofessional conduct last year. A state panel found Coates guilty on all counts following a hearing in December. The full board voted unanimously in February to revoke his license. The state panel also assessed Coates $4,000 in administrative fees for his misconduct and issued him a public repri-
mand. Laramie presented five witnesses, including Coates, and the two mothers. The woman’s husband, who was initially a co-plaintiff in the civil case, also testified. A doctor from Connecticut served as an expert witness about the proper doctor-patient standards. Senior Federal Judge William K. Sessions III agreed to give defense lawyer Peter Joslin 30 days to file any possible post-trial motions. Coates practiced from 1974 to 1986 in Washington County, including at Central Vermont Medical Center and the office of Associates in Gynecology and Obstetrics in Berlin. Coates also was associated with University of Vermont Medical Center and Mountain View Physicians Office in Colchester from 1986-2009, records show. The lawsuit was initially filed against Coates and Central Vermont Medical Center in December 2018. The hospital, which was sued on grounds of failure to properly supervise, later was dropped from the lawsuit. Claims in the lawsuit included medical negligence, fraud, battery, emotional distress, breach of contract failure to obtain informed consent and violation of consumer protection laws.
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Page 6 • April 7, 2022 • Shelburne News
OPINION Legislature pushes through major, potentially costly changes Guest Perspective John McClaughry The Vermont Legislature is moving swiftly into its final six weeks. A major issue, as always, is parceling out revenues to cover the $8.1 billion general fund and transportation budgets. That process is eased this year by the tsunami of federal dollars rolling into the state, allowing the solons to fund programs and causes that in ordinary times, with normal state revenues, would not make the cut. A major feature of next year’s spending bill is the Climate Action Plan’s imperative to put an astounding 170,000 electric vehicles on the road by 2030 — 164,000 more than the state has now. To race down this pathway, the state will spend $10 million to install charging stations and pay people $12 million to buy electric vehicles. Of special interest are bills that change the rules or add new restrictions and entitlements. One such is the child tax credit proposal (H.510) that the House approved 102-46. This would confer $1,200 a year on families for each child under age 7. Lest it be seen as a nontaxable handout to the wealthy, the credit would phase down at $200,000 of adjusted gross income, disappearing at $220,000. Above that, families will have to make do without this benefit. Once approved, no Legislature will ever vote to repeal this. With
inflation taking its toll, there will be regular efforts to increase the $1,200, expand eligibility to age 12, or make it available to struggling families with adjusted gross incomes greater than $220,000. The House has passed (98-42) another climate council must-have bill, the Community Resilience and Biodiversity Protection Act (H.606). It loftily declares that “nature is facing a catastrophic loss of biodiversity, both globally and locally,” so we must increase the pace of permanent conservation to 30 percent of total land area in Vermont by 2030 and to 50 percent by 2050. Rural land is conserved when the state and federal government owns it, or an environmental organization or trust owns it, or you own it, but can’t do much of anything with it except pay taxes on it. This is a reincarnation of the conservation areas of the 1972 State Land Use Plan of unhappy memory, that expired without action in 1976.
The bill charges the secretary of natural resources with working out the details, and the Legislature will impose the needed regulations in 2024. At least there’ll be a legislative vote before rural landowners are “conserved,” which is more than the climate council can say for its disgraceful clean heat standard. That measure (H.715) passed the House 96-44. Simply put, it will make your fuel oil and gas bill constantly go up. The extra dollars you’ll have to pay will end up in the pockets of the heat pump installers, weatherization contractors and the army of bureaucrats required to track and police an unlimited flow of Public Utility Commission-created credits bestowed on politically favored businesses. No legislator will vote on putting this stealth tax into effect. Another Senate-passed bill (S.234) adds “no adverse impact on forest blocks and connecting habitat” as one more criterion
for Act 250 permit approval, and authorizes requiring costly and unpredictable mitigation requirements. Then there’s the omnibus housing bill (S. 226) that just passed the Senate 28-0. It does relax some strictures on multifamily and accessory housing units, which is good. It also authorizes newly created municipal or regional land banks to accept title to blighted properties and presumably arrange for their improvement and reoccupation. The land banks won’t have the power to tax, so it’s not clear what funds they’ll use to pay their operating and legal expenses and finance their properties. The bill would exempt residential housing in bureaucratically designated neighborhood development areas from compliance with Act 250. This is another example of setting a high and expensive bar to development (Act 250), and then exempting politically favored projects in politically designated places.
The same bill would create a homeless bill of rights, to protect people who are homeless or are perceived by somebody as being homeless. The bill exempts homeless people from prosecution for panhandling, an exemption not available to people who have homes. Nor could a homeless person be denied voter registration for being unable to offer evidence that he or she actually lives in the town. This can be viewed as a green light for election day tourism. These are only a few of the measures rapidly moving through our House and Senate that, aside from the electric vehicle subsidies, don’t merely make questionable use of money. They’ll make real changes, and in some cases — notably the clean heat standard — they will make a mockery of the Constitution’s prescription of legislative accountability. John McClaughry is vice president of the Ethan Allen Institute.
Parental liberty stops at schoolhouse door Poor Elijah’s Almanack Peter N. Berger By June 1940 Britain stood alone against Hitler. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was working to persuade the American people and Congress that it was in our interest to grant Churchill’s plea to “give us the tools, and we
will finish the job.” First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt recognized the necessity of supporting Britain and preparing for war. She questioned the point, though, of defending democracy abroad in the world if we didn’t preserve democracy at home in the United States. Applying Mrs. Roosevelt’s words as war rages in Ukraine,
we need more than ever to “make democracy work at home and prove it is worth preserving.” We’ve become a land governed by arrogance, expediency, corruption, incompetence, insurrection and sedition. An alarming percentage of Americans believe in a conspiracy of humanoid lizards and Democratic pedophiles who secretly rule
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the world. Republican senators’ recent interrogation of Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson appeared to exploit Americans’ susceptibility to this QAnon conspiracy theory. Republican politicians also disseminate rumors that public schools are teaching critical race theory, an allegedly biased, university-level analysis of racial inequality. In fairness, teachers, both liberals and conservatives, sometimes present their opinions as historical facts. I’m not talking about bigots or zealots on the left or the right, or about fanatics who threaten school board members and their children or show up with plastic handcuffs to arrest the principal. These excesses are symptomatic of the intolerance and violence that are undermining our democracy. I’m talking about Americans who hope to be reasonable. Not every difference of opinion or disagreement about facts is the product of bias. Liberal activists, for example, tend to emphasize that the Civil War was fought to end slavery. They contend that anyone who claims that states’ rights caused the war is trying to sanitize history and American racism. See BERGER on page 7
Shelburne News • April 7, 2022 • Page 7
BERGER
continued from page 6 The problem is that the Civil War’s agony climaxed a train of disputes between states and the federal government. It began in 1798 with the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, written by Madison and Jefferson to oppose the Alien and Sedition Acts. It included New England’s threats to secede in 1803 and 1813 over the Louisiana Purchase and the War of 1812. Meanwhile, South Carolina, whose secession in 1860 precipitated the attack on Fort Sumter, initially threatened to secede in 1832 over the imposition of federal tariffs. Conservative partisans, in contrast, often minimize slavery’s causal role. They cite a letter Abraham Lincoln wrote to Horace Greeley where he identified preserving the Union as his presidential duty and priority. They’re less likely to note Lincoln’s reference in the same letter to “my oft-expressed personal wish that all men everywhere could be free.” They also frequently charge it’s unpatriotic to sully our national reputation or prominent founders’ reputations by emphasizing slavery’s iniquity or those founders’ participation in it. I’ve sometimes inadvertently
over-emphasized one viewpoint or the other, but accurate history is more instructive and useful than simplistic, cosmetic history. It isn’t unpatriotic to acknowledge that George Washington owned slaves. It’s the truth. It’s silly and misleading to leave either slavery or states’ rights out of the story. Even more fundamental than deciding what to teach in a public school is the question of who gets to make the decision. Teachers should be consulted because we’re supposed to know the material and how to present it. Parents deserve to be heard because they’re the rightful sovereigns in their children’s lives. But public schools don’t belong to teachers despite our presumed expertise, or to parents even though the children in them do. Since their founding in colonial Massachusetts, American public schools have belonged to their communities. The Puritans believed their commonwealth’s well-being depended on raising up generations who could read the Bible. Education was therefore a public responsibility, undertaken for the public good, that should be supported by taxes and governed by the public. While public education no longer exists to deliver biblical
truths, we’ve entrusted our schools with a public mission we deem valid and valuable. We support public schools so children can learn to be literate, informed citizens, equipped with knowledge and skills society considers worthwhile, and capable of a constructive role in governing our republic. Schools exist to serve this societal purpose, not to suit my parental agenda. We elect and appoint school boards to faithfully carry out that mandate. If I disagree with that board’s policies or curriculum decisions, I can state my case at a public meeting, like any other citizen. I can run to replace a school board member with whom I disagree, like any other citizen. I can sue in court. I can even withdraw my child from my local school. What I can’t do is usurp the power to set school policy. I can’t claim the peremptory right to run my child’s public school in the name of my parental liberty. What I shouldn’t do is reflexively shut my ears to opposing points of view. As long as we live within spitting, walking or flying distance of each other, as long as we breathe the same air and drink the same water, our liberty will be measured and governed by other people
intent on their liberty. It’s folly to expect otherwise and madness to resort to violence over a book or a bathroom. Sadly, here on the home front,
folly and madness are every day more the American way. Peter Berger has taught English and history for 30 years.
Letters to the Editor Noble settlement lacks accountability, transparency To the Editor: What am I missing here? The results of the James Baker investigation into the complete dismantling of our police department were crystal clear: Former Police Chief Noble was the reason for so many departures. Why have Shelburne Selectboard and town manager rewarded Noble with an 18-month salary gift instead of terminating his employment? Is this a result of poor legal advice from our town’s lawyer? Or is there more to the story? If anyone should see a financial kickback it should be the taxpayers. We pay for and expect full-time law enforcement but obviously haven’t been receiving this level of service for a while. Better yet, pay the dedicated officers who have remained with
the department and who have been asked to work incredible hours protecting our town. It’s also alarming that our officials agree to retain Noble as a “law enforcement consultant” for $102,440. I’m guessing that terminology was added to the settlement to mask this charade in hopes the taxpayers just go on about their lives in Shelburne without seeking honesty and transparency from our officials. If Shelburne officials need additional law enforcement consulting services, continue to use JW Consulting, LLC, Col. (Ret.) James W. Baker. Once again, a few of us taxpayers would like to see more honesty, transparency and accountability with our elected and hired officials. Thomas Murphy Shelburne
Page 8 • April 7, 2022 • Shelburne News
Butternut canker affects enigmatic Vermont tree Into the Woods Ethan Tapper Butternut (Juglans cinerea) is an enigmatic tree. Also called white walnut, butternut is the hardiest member of the walnut genus, with a range stretching north into southern Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick, as far west as Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri, and south to Tennessee. In Vermont, butternut trees are usually found on rich, moist soils, growing alongside sugar maple, basswood, white ash and plants like maidenhair fern and blue cohosh. It is shade-intolerant, needing lots of sunlight to thrive. While butternut was likely never a common or long-lived tree in Vermont’s forests, it is becoming increasingly uncommon and shorter-lived due to the preva-
lence of a non-native pathogen called butternut canker. Butternut trees produce butternuts: a hard-shelled, fatty nut much like a walnut, encased in a fleshy, green, football-shaped husk. Butternut has a compound leaf of seven to 17 pointed leaflets, unfurling from brown twigs with distinctive large, light-brown terminal buds and leaf scars that look like little monkey faces with yellow unibrows. The bark is patterned with narrow, interlacing ridges, similar to that of ash trees but darker in color. When stressed or afflicted with butternut canker, as they usually are, butternut bark is black and ashy gray and its ridges look sanded off. Butternut is culturally important to the Abenaki, who call See INTO THE WOODS on page 9
FILE PHOTO
Forestry officials predict that 100 percent of butternuts across their native range are infected with butternut canker.
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Shelburne News • April 7, 2022 • Page 9
INTO THE WOODS continued from page 8
butternut bagon. Abenaki and other indigenous peoples eat butternuts and use their fleshy husks and the tree’s bark as a dye, and the abundance of butternuts at archaeological sites suggests that Indigenous people may have planted and dispersed the species for millennia. After European colonization, butternut trees were widely planted by colonists and butternuts became an ingredient in traditional New England cuisine. While butternut trees were historically prized for their nuts, rather than their wood, today butternut lumber is used for a variety of purposes — most of them ornamental. Butternut wood is soft, light and pretty, an excellent carving wood. Butternut logs can be sold living or dead, and butternut lumber is often full of character, including the wormholes prominent in dead trees. Butternut is an awful firewood. An old-timer once told me: “It burns as well as a snowball and produces half the heat.” In today’s forests, healthy butternut trees are extremely rare due to a fungus called butternut canker (Sirococcus clavigignenti-juglandacearum). Butternut canker was first discovered in Wisconsin in 1967, perhaps
introduced on Asian walnut trees. Dispersed by wind, rain and insects, this pathogen creates black cankers on butternut’s bark that proliferate until they girdle and kill the tree. According to the U.S. Forest Service, close to 100 percent of butternuts in their native range are infected, with mortality rates exceeding 90 percent. Efforts have been made to study and promote resistance to butternut canker using a variety of methods, including crossing butternuts with Japanese walnut (Juglans ailantifolia). Interestingly, a certain amount of hybridization between butternut and Japanese walnut has been occurring for over a century: Japanese walnuts, especially the cultivar known as Japanese heartnut, have been planted in North America since the 1800s. This species naturally hybridizes with butternut, creating a tree called buartnut, which was noted in the United States by the early 1900s. While buartnuts are more resistant to butternut canker than butternuts, hybridization comes at a risk: potentially eroding some of the unique and adaptive genetic qualities of the butternut species. Each native tree species has a unique role to play in Vermont’s
The butternut is easily identifiable in the Vermont woods by the shape of its leaves, usually clustered in groups of 15-19, and often lacking a terminal leaflet.
forests. Forests are natural communities: complex assemblages of species that are greater than the sum of their parts and which are enriched by diversity. The loss of a tree species impacts forests in profound ways, and butternut is just one of several important tree species that we have lost, that we are losing or whose role in our forests has been radically changed due to a non-native pest or pathogen.
Others include elm, beech, chestnut and ash. In a changing world, taking care of forests means supporting their resilience and their ability to adapt. Doing our best to save butternut is just one piece in this puzzle. Others include stopping deforestation and forest fragmentation, controlling non-native invasive plants and addressing the many other threats to forest health and to biodiversity. It’s
up to us to help forests respond to the profound challenges of the modern world as they move into an uncertain future. Ethan Tapper is the Chittenden County forester for the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. See what he’s been up to, check out his YouTube channel, sign up for his newsletter and read articles he’s written at linktr. ee/chittendencountyforester.
Page 10 • April 7, 2022 • Shelburne News
COMMUNITY Community Notes Shelburne debates fair, impartial policing policy
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questions or for assistance signing up. New to the food shelf? Call for help with the sign-up process and remember to arrive on time for appointments. Drop boxes for donations of food may be found at Shelburne Market, Pierson Library (west entrance) and town offices (south entrance). Current needs are listed at shelburnefoodshelf.org/currentneeds.html
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St. Catherine’s, Age Well team up to provide meal Age Well and St. Catherine’s of Siena Parish in Shelburne are teaming up to provide a meal to go for anyone age 60 and older on Tuesday, April 12. The meal will be available for pick up in the parking lot, 72 Church Street, 11 a.m. to noon. The menu is baked ham with raisin sauce, sweet potatoes, Capri blend vegetables, dinner roll, Easter cake with icing and milk. To order a meal: email (preferred) Sheryl at soberding@ yahoo.com or call 802-825-8546 by April 7.
Register ahead for Age Well meals The Age Well meal pickup for Thursday, April 7, is from 11 a.m. to noon, Charlotte Senior Center, 212 Ferry Road, and features sweet and sour pork with vegetables, brown rice with lentils and vegetables, green beans, dinner roll, congo bar and milk. You must have pre-registered by Monday, April 4, with Lori York, 802-425-6371 or lyork@ charlotteseniorcentervt.org The meal on Thursday, April 14 — register by April 11 — is baked ham with raisin sauce, sweet potatoes, Capri blend vegetables, dinner roll, Easter cake with icing and milk. Check the website for last-minute cancellations at charlotteseniorcentervt.org.
Hinesburg event helps feed Ukrainian refugees The United Church of Hinesburg last sent approximately $4,000 to World Central Kitchen, which is distributing hot meals to Ukrainians fleeing their homeland. The church plans to send a second contribution of donations soon. Want to help? Go to ucofh.org or send a check, with “Ukraine mission” in the memo, to United Church of Hinesburg P.O. Box 39, Hinesburg VT 05461. One hundred percent of the proceeds will be sent to World Central Kitchen. See COMMUNITY NOTES on page 11
Shelburne News • April 7, 2022 • Page 11
News from Pierson Library April is all about poetry with special events at the Pierson The Pierson Library is celebrating National Poetry Month with three upcoming special events. First, add a poem to the library’s “Poetree” on the first floor. Print out a poem and add it to the tree or write it out on one of the colorful leaves available at the library. It can be any kind words, a haiku or a poem that inspires you in the moment. On Wednesday, April 20, at 7 p.m., join outgoing poet laureate Rick Bessette and incoming poet laureate Rob Broder for a celebration of poetry. The library will honor Bessette’s service as Shelburne’s first poet laureate, hear original poems from both, and invite audience members to share a poem that is meaningful to them (original or from another poet). This poetry open mic event will have
light refreshments and will be held in town hall. On Sunday, May 1, 3 p.m., join Jane Kittredge and the Playing for Good Ensemble for an evening of music and poetry. The program features the poetry of Robert Frost, Wyn Cooper, Chard deNiord, Julie Cadwallader-Staub and Young Writers Project poet Zoe Bernstein, to name a few. Musical works are by Mendelssohn, William Grant Still, Piazzolla and Caroline Shaw. Each poem is paired with a piece of music that can in some way depict, illustrate and enhance the other. Playing for Good is a professional classical chamber ensemble and concert series, as well as a group of friends and colleagues with decades of experience performing throughout the Northeast, including members of the Vermont Symphony Orchestra.
COMMUNITY NOTES continued from page 10
All-star lineup headlines Howard Center conference
PHOTO BY ROB BRODER
The Poetree at the Pierson Library in Shelburne.
Howard Center presents its fifth annual conference, Vision, Visionaries and Voices, virtually on Thursday, April 7, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., featuring international speakers Mary Bassett, Anita Hill, Byron Katie, Ethan Nadelmann and Tara Westover. Bassett is acting commissioner of health for the state of New York. Her conference discussion, “Pulling Back the Curtain: COVID-19 and Historic Health Inequities,” tackles the factors underlying structural racism, how they negatively impact communities of color and actions that health care providers, public health officials and others must take to make meaningful change toward health equity and justice. Hill’s talk, “Our Critical Need to Eliminate Gender Violence and Inequality,” draws from personal experience to discuss the prevalence of gender violence and racial inequal-
ity in society and the toll these ills take on the mental health of victims. Katie will explore whether relief from suffering, depression and discontent is as simple as questioning one’s thoughts? Nadelmann will explore the evolution of drug policies in the U.S., while Westover’s topic is “Reconciling with a Traumatic Childhood.” She is the author of the popular memoir, “Educated.” The full-day conference will be hosted by Howard Center’s Catherine Simonson and moderated by Dr. Jude Smith Rachele of Howard Center and Abundant Sun. Registration is required and continuing education credits are available for a variety of professions. Visit howardcenter.org.
Upcoming blood drives Thursday, April 14, 2-7 p.m., Charlotte Senior Center, 212 Ferry Road, Charlotte.
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DISTRICTS
continued from page 1 ture’s move to two three-member and one single member Chittenden County Senate districts will avoid one town (like South Burlington) having too much power. “Three-member districts really accomplished the following: it allowed for no one district to have one town that overrides or has a supermajority over other smaller towns,” he said. An earlier iteration of the Senate map with two member districts would have meant that South Burlington’s population consumed over half of the district, despite being grouped in with a few other towns, he said, but other legislators worried the city’s voice would be too loud. Now, the city only makes up about a third of the population in the Chittenden Southeast district, which includes part of Burlington, Williston, Shelburne, Hinesburg, Charlotte, Richmond, Bolton, Underhill and St. George. “There have been concerns about one town or another being lost if it’s a rural town, but I’ve always felt a strong responsibility to represent each of my towns as effectively as I can,” Lyons said. The three-member Chittenden Central district includes the towns of Burlington, Winooski and part of Essex, while the Chittenden North district, which will be represented by one senator, includes Fairfax, Milton, Westford and part of Essex. Giving one community too much power was the prevailing concern that catalyzed the breakup of the Chittenden six-member
district in 2019, and it still seems to concern many Vermonters. Last year, as the state Legislative Apportionment Board began redrawing the districts, respondents to one of its surveys decried the county as too powerful and overshadowing less populous Vermont communities. Melissa Ross, the town clerk in Hinesburg, said that the former county district “was too large and cumbersome for voters, constituent work and candidates themselves.” “I believe having fewer candidates to learn about and understand will be easier for the voters. Similarly, having fewer constituents and fewer towns to represent will make advocacy for those people and municipalities more effective for the senators who are serving,” she said. Still, the county is the most populous in the state with over 168,000 people and steady growth. The new legislative maps seem to be good news for South Burlington, which added 2,388 people to its population since the 2010 census and will take the title of second biggest city in Vermont after the village of Essex Junction breaks from the town of Essex.
In the House Thanks to that growth, South Burlington will likely send a fifth representative to the House next year in a new district shared with neighboring Williston, which saw 16 percent growth in its population since 2010, one of the biggest jumps in the state. At about 10,100
people, the municipality is just under half the size of South Burlington. Currently, South Burlington’s four House districts are served by Ann Pugh, John Killacky, Maida Townsend and Martin LaLonde, all Democrats. At 30 percent, Killacky’s district had the biggest growth in the state since the last census, with Pugh’s district close behind him at 27.5 percent. Chris Shaw, chair of both the South Burlington Board of Civil Authority and the South Burlington Democrats, believes the city has some shared values with Williston but perhaps more in common with Shelburne. “(Williston) probably will have more of a problem with it insofar as their numbers are smaller compared to ours. That gives us an electoral advantage if you want to have a South Burlington person in that office,” Shaw said. As far as the Senate goes, he’s happy with the city’s representation in the new Chittenden Southeast district. “Our representation is, in our mind as the board of civil authority, better represented with like towns like Shelburne, Williston, and so on. I’m not sure we have as much in common with Jericho, Underhill, Richmond and Bolton, but the problem is, of course, they haven’t the pennies and often get moved around like pawns,” Shaw said. Slighter but still substantial, Shelburne grew by about 8 percent, Hinesburg grew by 6 percent and Charlotte grew by 4 percent, according to the census. No changes were made to the two House districts in Shelburne — one of which encompasses St. George. But with the slight growth in Charlotte, town officials there were hoping they could have their own representative. Currently, Charlotte’s district includes a small slice of land in the southwest portion of Hinesburg. “For the last 20 years, a small portion of Hinesburg has been included in the Housedistrict. That’s not new,” said Thomas A. Little, the special master of the state’s legislative apportionment board. “But the people in Charlotte were hoping that perhaps the population of Charlotte was big enough so that it could support a House member without adding any population from Hinesburg. Likewise, the folks in Hinesburg were hoping that they didn’t have to contribute any population to try to make the Charlotte numbers work.” Charlotte’s growth was not big enough to justify its own district, Little said. But the prospect of combining the two districts into one “has even been taken seriously.”
Shelburne News • April 7, 2022 • Page 13
Vermont’s corn history goes back to Indigenous roots Connect the Dots Jane Dorney Q: How can we see corn’s impact on the Vermont landscape through time? A retired farmer I once interviewed told me that on Groundhog’s Day — winter’s halfway point — he always checked to see if he still had half of the feed his livestock needed to make it to spring. I think of him in late winter as I drive past farms and look at their remaining silage. As I do, it reminds me how the corn plant, originally a wild grass from Mexico, has changed Vermont over time. Many of the story’s chapters can be seen today. Today’s corn is descended from a southern Mexican grass called teosinte with cobs one-tenth the size of modern corn. About 9,000 years ago, Native Americans started selectively breeding teosinte for larger seeds using hand pollination and hybridization. By the time Europeans arrived in the late 1400s, corn had been shared by
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chickens, happily ate corn, allowing settlers to add more protein to their diets with more milk products, eggs and meat. By 1850, corn was the second most common grain produced on Vermont farms, with more than two million bushels grown annually. Only oats for horses edged it out in production. Corn was harvested when the kernels were dry, husked by hand and stored in specially designed corn cribs raised on posts to keep rodents out — the Rokeby Museum in Ferrisburgh has one. In the 19th century, Germans
started experimenting with fermenting chopped green plants into silage using the same process used for sauerkraut. The still-green plants were harvested, chopped, compacted to exclude air and left to ferment for several weeks. The silage was so acidic it preserved itself for months with little spoilage. After these successful experiments, New England farmers started making corn silage in the late 1800s. It had a dramatic impact, particularly on dairy farming. Silage was more digestible and
palatable than kernel corn for cows and feeding the whole plant and not just the kernels provided much more food value per acre of corn. The higher quality feed could also be available all winter, significantly boosting milk production by milking year-round. As local farmers continued to experiment, their silage storage methods evolved. At first, a few adventuresome farmers built underground pit silos. When it proved too hard to lift the silage out, farmers See CONNECT THE DOTS on page 16
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CROSSWORD
ARIES
LEO
March 21 - April 20 Enhanced feelings of determination motivate you this week, Aries. You will be able to wrap up projects that you’ve thus far been unable to finish. You will be able to handle anything.
TAURUS April 21 - May 21 The end of the tunnel isn’t as far away as it may seem right now, Taurus. Take one step at a time and you will find out that the culmination of something challenging is near.
GEMINI
July 23 - Aug. 23 Leo, friends will come to you seeking advice or simply looking for a patient person to lend an ear. Give them all the time they need to share their thoughts.
VIRGO Aug. 24 - Sept. 22 Getting through the week shouldn’t be too much of a problem for you, Libra. A second wind of energy may come your way and you will have the determination to get the job done.
LIBRA
May 22 - June 21 Think about making some plans for a getaway or a short vacation this week, Gemini. You likely can use the break and change of scenery. Use this as an opportunity to rest and refocus.
CANCER June 22 - July 22 Cancer, try not to be too judgemental of others, especially as it pertains to a project at work. Be openminded to other ideas and value another’s perspective.
Sept. 23 - Oct. 23 When a project presents itself you don’t want to pass on it, Libra. Do your due diligence. Now is not the time for shortcuts or to rush through anything.
SCORPIO Oct. 24 - Nov. 22 There’s a good chance you will feel positive and upbeat for most of the week, Scorpio. Make the most of this good mood and catch up with friends and loved ones.
SUDOKU Here’s How It Works: Sudoku puzzles are formatted as a 9x9 grid, broken down into nine 3x3 boxes. To solve a sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must fill each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can figure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes. The more numbers you name, the easier it gets to solve the puzzle!
SAGITTARIUS Nov. 23 - Dec. 21 Sagittarius, don’t underestimate your ability to be resourceful when a problem lands in your lap. You will find the answers to get through it.
CAPRICORN Dec. 22 - Jan. 20 Try not to let one obstacle get you down, Capricorn. You will have plenty of other opportunities to redeem yourself and find success in the task at hand.
AQUARIUS Jan. 21 - Feb. 18 Aquarius, it can be easy to fall into a rut, but by daring to be different you may gain a new perspective on things you never imagined. Try a new style and embrace the change.
PISCES Feb. 19 - March 20 Resist feeling self-conscious about some of your choices, Pisces. If you believe in yourself, others will start to flock to your side.
CLUES ACROSS 1. Midway between south and southeast 4. Celebrations 9. Pulpits 14. Pin 15. Rare laughing 16. Parts of the circulatory system 17. Financial term 18. Pearl Jam frontman 20. Cores of vascular plants 22. Strong sharp smell or taste 23. City in S. Korea 24. One from Damascus 28. Short message at the end of an email 29. It cools your home 30. Towards the mouth or oral region 31. Intestinal pouches 33. Boys and men 37. The 12th letter of the Greek alphabet 38. Former CIA 39. A way to arrange 41. Body cavity 42. The Great Lake State 43. A type of seal 44. Stop for a moment 46. Ancient kingdom 49. Of I 50. White clerical vestment
51. Songs to a lover 55. Prices 58. Sun-dried brick 59. Where to park a boat 60. One who values reason and knowledge 64. Partner to feather 65. Sailboats 66. Actress Zellweger 67. Type of screen 68. Country singer Haggard 69. Puts together in time 70. When you hope to arrive CLUES DOWN 1. An involuntary muscular contraction 2. PA transit system 3. Leaves a place 4. Sweet greenish fruit 5. Lends support to 6. Chap 7. Singer Di Franco 8. Water at boiling temperature diffused in the atmosphere 9. Asserts to be the case 10. Doctor (Spanish) 11. Auction attendee 12. Characterized by unity 13. Soviet Socialist Republic 19. Way to analyze video (abbr.)
ANSWERS
21. Nonclerical 24. Tree resin 25. The academic world 26. Khoikhoi peoples 27. Infer from data 31. Arrives 32. Apart 34. Takes on cargo 35. Beloved Hollywood alien 36. Takes apart 40. Dorm official 41. Secondary or explanatory descriptor 45. Relating to wings 47. Speaker 48. Situated in the middle 52. Loop with a running knot 53. Alaska nursing group (abbr.) 54. Beloveds 56. Establish by law or with authority 57. Border river between India and Nepal 59. Millisecond 60. Revolutions per minute 61. They __ 62. ESPN broadcaster Bob 63. A place to stay
Page 16 • April 7, 2022 • Shelburne News
PHOTO BY JANE DORNEY
20th-century concrete silos at Bread and Butter Farm off Cheesefactory Road in Shelburne.
CONNECT THE DOTS continued from page 13
tried above-ground wooden silo rooms built in a barn corner or separate structures outside the barns. Unfortunately, the silage in the corners of these square spaces spoiled. By the early 20th century, farmers tried eight-sided wooden towers, some with more than eight sides and some of which can still be seen today. As the average farm herd increased tenfold from the late 1800s to the late 1900s, the need for silage increased. Concrete became cheaper and farmers began building round concrete silos, still considered the classic by many. But the most modern silos are the large blue metal Harvestores that are virtually airtight and better preserve silage. Jane Dorney In recent years, many Vermont dairy farmers have moved away from using upright silos and instead use three-sided concrete bunkers. Silage is loaded in the bunkers, compacted by driving heavy equipment over it, and covered with plastic sheets weighed with tires to ferment. In 2020, Vermont farmers grew 80,000 acres of corn at 19 tons per acre. Much of it was stored in silage bunkers. While farmers are still innovating with new corn varieties and silage, some local
groups are preserving Indigenous seed varieties saved for centuries by Native Americans. In 2012, the Seeds of Renewal project sought out Abenaki-saved seeds in the region and established a seed library with Sterling College. Recently, the nonprofit Abenaki Helping Abenaki has partnered with Vermont farmers and gardeners to use some of the surplus Indigenous seed to grow food and distribute it to Abenaki citizens. Corn changed Vermont, the Americas and the world. Developed by Native Americans over thousands of years, corn is now the world’s number one grain crop. It’s raised on every continent except Antarctica and feeds billions. We can see our story’s chapters in the silos and the silage bunkers along our rural roads. The silage may be over half gone, but our dairy farmers are planning the next growing season and will soon be planting corn again, as the cycle continues. Jane Dorney is a consulting geographer who does research and education projects to help people understand why the Vermont landscape looks like it does. See more at janedorney.com.